The Mysterious Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa, for some of us that may not know, is a painting done by the famous Leonardo Da Vinci which was an Italian artist, a physicist and an architect.
It is believed that the painting was done in between the year 1503 and 1506. Even though it was that long ago, yet still, it has gained celebrity-status in both contemporary art world and the current general public.
Among the reasons why this very painting is a global sensation, is because of the never-ending speculations on who the model, the sitter might be. Many scholars have believed that it is a portrait of a woman named Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo, but never was there found any commission paper-works assigned by Francesco himself. With this absence of evidence, no man can be fully confident on who the real sitter may be.
Strangely enough, there has even been a suggestion that it could be Da Vinci’s own self-portrait, yet although it may seem highly unlikely, no one could falsify that either.
If we were to divide the portrait into four parts, they would all suggest different kinds of characters. For instance, if you were to place your hand on the left side of the portrait, you’d see a big-size person while if you were to close the right side, you’d see the person as being thin.
Same situation for the other side where if you were to close the bottom half of the portrait starting from the nose-level, Mona Lisa’s eyes will appear as very serious. And if you close the top half, you’d see a friendly smile. All of this may just be a matter of coincidence, but interestingly enough, the results are obvious.
Furthermore, we could all very much agree upon the fact that this painting was done by the artist’s tremendous set of painting skills. His attention to detail in tackling the lighting, the bold composition and the slightest lines and colour, is indeed amazing. On top of that, the painting is very small (30 inches by 21 inches) which makes all of the artistic processes require more intricate focus in order to make the whole imagery work well.
Throughout the history of this painting being hung in various museums, there was a time where the world had lost its chance to witness it. The painting was stolen. During the time of absence, many flowers and notes were put against the wall in remembering the icon the world greatly speak about.
FUN FACT: Did you know Pablo Picasso was suspected of stealing The Mona Lisa?
Fortunately, the painting was successfully being regained by the rightful museum. On the other hand, previously in the year 1956, the painting was attacked by a Bolivian who threw a rock straight into the painting and has left permanent damage.
Either you hate her or love her, Mona Lisa has impacted greatly through its mysterious ways in getting to the heart of its viewer.
